Three days to the March 18 governorship election in 28 states, parties, candidates and other stakeholders are locked in intense battles, as parties and individuals realign.
In Kaduna State, the Amalgamation of De-registered Political Parties of Nigeria declared their support for the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship candidate, Senator Uba Sani.
Meanwhile, in Abia State, aggrieved members of APC resolved to end their bickering and ensure the success of their governorship candidate, High Chief Ikechi Emenike.
Kaduna
The Secretary of Amalgamation of De-registered Political Parties of Nigeria, Kaduna State chapter, Ambassador Matoh Yakubu, told reporters that they took the decision after wide consultation with members and a network of stakeholders, and opinion leaders.
According to him, Senator Sani is a civil society activist, a crusader for social justice, an award-winning (ICPC certified) anti-corruption crusader, and a high-performing senator.
“These wide-ranging consultations provided us the mandate to make the declaration of support in this press conference.
“We are disturbed by the negative signals coming from some political parties that have decided to create a political gimmick they called the ‘Muslim-Muslim’ ticket.
“This phrase is a coinage of the opposition in Kaduna State. The APC only gave voice to our women who have been kept in the backyard for long.
“And for the last four years, the performance of Kaduna State women in governance is clear for everyone to see.
“We state clearly that the combination of Senator Sani and Dr. Hadiza Balarabe is a strategic strike at the political balancing act.
“We the Amalgamation of De-Registered Political Parties, Kaduna State chapter, on behalf of our teeming membership in the 23 councils, wards, and communities, on this 14th day of March 2023, do hereby declare that we wholeheartedly endorse the candidature of Senator Uba Sani of the APC as the preferred choice for the governorship position of Kaduna State in the election slated for March 18.”
Aggrieved APC members in Abia
Across several local governments in Abia South zone, leaders of the dissident APC groups announced that they have collapsed their parallel structures to join hands with the party’s governorship candidate, Emenike.
In a communique signed by all the ward chairmen in Aba South Local Government, the aggrieved party members on the platform of Integrity Group, comprising factional ward chairmen and other executives, said that they have resolved to embrace unity.
They pledged “to work harmoniously to ensure the success of the party in the forthcoming governorship/state assembly elections,” adding that “the interest of the party is paramount and supersedes any personal interest.”
While welcoming the estranged party members back, Emenike assured them that their status as members of Abia APC has not diminished in any form.
“We are all APC members. What unites us is greater than what divides us,” he said, adding.
“I want all of us to forget the past disagreements in the party and let us work together for the interest of our party,” he added.
